A Microscopic Model for Quantum Optomechanics

Abstract

We study a microscopic model, the Mirror-Oscillator-Field (MOF) model proposed in [1], for describing optomechanical interactions. In contrast with the conventional approach where the mirror-field interaction is understood as arising from the radiation pressure of an optical field inducing the motion of the mirror’s CoM, the MOF model incorporates the dynamics of the internal degrees of freedom of the mirror that couple to the optical field directly. Considering the mirror’s internal and mechanical degrees of freedom as two separate degrees of freedom we derive the optomechanical properties of the coupled mirror and field system. The major advantage in this approach is that it provides a self-consistent treatment of the three relevant subsystems (the mirror’s motion, its internal degrees of freedom and the field) including their back-actions on each other, thereby giving a more accurate account of the coupled internal and external dynamics. The optical and the mechanical properties of a mirror arising from its dynamical interaction with the field are obtained without imposing any boundary conditions on the field additionally, as is done in the conventional way. We find that our results agree with those from the boundary condition approach in the appropriate limits and more generally the model provides a framework within which one can study optomechanical elements with different internal structures and mechanical properties, which makes it suited for studying hybrid systems. Considering the quantum dynamics of the coupled subsystems we look at the entanglement between the mirror’s motion and the field, showing that the internal degrees of the mirror, in the appropriate parameter regimes, can act as a means to coherently transfer quantum correlations between the field and the mechanics thus leading to a larger optomechanical entanglement. We then use the MOF model to study the entanglement between the motion of an atom and a field for the setup in [95] and find a larger optomechanical entanglement when the field is closer to the internal resonance. We also study the interaction between two mirrors as described by the MOF model, specifically looking at the entanglement between the motion of their centers of mass. Conclusively, we see that including the dynamics of the internal degrees of freedom of a mirror, which is the quintessential mediator of interaction between the mirror center of mass and the field, leads to qualitatively different physics, specifically in the quantum regime, thus giving a physically more complete treatment of mirror-field interactions.